This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of the art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
As will be appreciated, oil and natural gas have a profound effect on modern economies and societies. Indeed, devices and systems that depend on oil and natural gas are ubiquitous. For instance, oil and natural gas are used for fuel in a wide variety of vehicles, such as cars, airplanes, boats, and the like. Further, oil and natural gas are frequently used to heat homes during winter, to generate electricity, and to manufacture an astonishing array of everyday products.
In order to meet the demand for such natural resources, companies often invest significant amounts of time and money in searching for and extracting oil, natural gas, and other subterranean resources from the earth. Particularly, once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, drilling and production systems are often employed to access and extract the resource. These systems may be located on shore or offshore, depending on the location of a desired resource. Further, such systems generally include a wellhead assembly though which the resource is extracted. These wellhead assemblies may include a wide variety of components, such as various casings, hangers, valves, fluid conduits, and the like, that control drilling and/or extraction operations. Additionally, such wellhead assemblies may also include components, such as an isolating mandrel (“frac mandrel”) and/or fracturing tree, to facilitate a fracturing process.
As will be appreciated, resources such as oil and natural gas are generally extracted from fissures or other cavities formed in various subterranean rock formations or strata. To facilitate extraction of such resources, a well may be subjected to a fracturing process that creates one or more man-made fractures in a rock formation. These man-made fractures then connect to a number of pre-existing or natural fissures and cavities, improving the dividend from the well. Such fracturing processes typically include injecting a fluid and carbon dioxide slurry into the well and well formation. The pressure of the fracturing fluids, however, may be greater than the pressure rating of certain components of a wellhead assembly. Moreover, the fracturing fluid may be abrasive.
Consequently, a frac mandrel is often utilized in such cases to isolate one or more lower-rated components from the fracturing pressure and fluid. A frac mandrel is typically inserted within a bore of the wellhead assembly and includes a body having a fluid passageway. This body isolates the lower-rated components from the pressure of the fracturing fluid injected into the well via the fluid passageway. Once the fracturing process is completed, the frac mandrel and other fracturing components may be removed from the wellhead assembly, and traditional production components, such as a “Christmas tree,” may be coupled to the assembly. (A “Christmas tree” is an assembly of valves generally used to control production fluids from the well.)